Field of the Invention
The present disclosure relates to coated musical instrument strings, particularly a musical instrument string bonded with a nano-polymer substance.
Background
Untreated musical instrument strings often degrade in quality over time. For example, metal musical instrument strings can become oxidized and/or corroded after coming in contact with agents such as oils, salts, and moisture from human hands, the surrounding air, or any other source.
To protect against such oxidation and corrosion, musical instrument strings are often coated with protective substances. For instance, musical instrument strings are often coated with polymers such as polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) or ethylene tetrafluorothylene (ETFE). Such coatings can resist picking up moisture, oils and other corrosive agents from a player's fingers and the general environment, and can provide a barrier that keeps such corrosive agents from contacting the string under the coating. However, moisture and oils can still accumulate over time on polymer-coated musical instrument strings, which can eventually degrade the musical instrument strings. Additionally, such coatings can wear or peel off over time, leaving the string at least partially exposed.
In some situations, coating a musical instrument string can alter its sound. For example, coating a musical instrument string can change its structural qualities enough to alter the way it vibrates, thereby changing its pitch. In some cases, coating a musical instrument string with conventional polymers can result in a relatively thick outer layer of polymer that can muffle the sounds produced by the musical instrument string.
Recently, nano-polymer substances have been developed that are hydrophobic and/or oleophobic. Such nano-polymer substances can substantially repel water and/or oils. As such, surfaces coated and/or bonded with nano-polymer substances can be protected from corrosive or oxidizing agents more than surfaces coated with conventional polymer coatings.
What is needed is a musical instrument string bonded with a nano-polymer substance. A nano-polymer bonded musical instrument string can be protected from oxidation, corrosion, and/or other degradation to a greater degree than conventionally coated strings. A nano-polymer bonded musical instrument string can also provide a different or improved sound when played on a musical instrument compared to conventionally coated and/or uncoated strings, as the nano-polymer substance can covalently and ionically bond with the string. As such, a nano-polymer bonded musical instrument string can avoid the muffling effects of a thicker layer of polymer coating.